Jemma, The Blue Jay

• Sarah Bailey, Grade 7
• Short Story
• 2009

Swooping down upon the market Jemma turned her attention towards finding something to eat. Jemma was a gorgeous blue jay. Her chest and tail were covered in electric blue feathers. The rest of her feathers were a soft chocolate brown. On the end of Jemma’s right wing was a spot of silver, the size of a ten cent coin. The rest of the blue jays envied her because of her metallic spot. She had long black eyelashes that bordered her lovely deep sea green eyes. Jemma had a kind heart and was helpful, intelligent, popular and extremely pretty.
Jemma could see for miles from up in the air. As she looked down, Jemma could see stalls crammed with merchandise. People were absolutely everywhere. Some were selling food, clothes, plants, and even animals, while others were bustling along, slowed down by their shopping. There were entertainers of every kind, such as absurd men walking on stilts and clever acrobats. There were also silly clowns and jugglers throwing and catching many objects at a time. As Jemma continued to glide, she saw people eating delicious food like hot chips, sausages and pies.
As the wind changed direction, Jemma could smell the most wonderful aromas. She could smell freshly baked breads, buns and rolls. While soaring over the fruit stall, she could smell delicious ripe mangoes and fresh strawberries. Further on, Jemma came across the fish market. The smell of sea salt and freshly caught fish was overwhelming. As Jemma flew on over the market, the fragrance of freshly cut flowers seemed to rush towards her. She could detect the smell of gardenias and roses out of the mass of flower scents.
The noise from the market never ceased to amaze her. There were people talking to each other and some were calling out prices for their merchandise. Kids were yelling at each other, while others were cheering on the performers. Instruments were playing in a far off corner of the market place. Occasionally, she could hear animals, making their own individual sounds, coming from the direction of the mini zoo. Every minute or so, you could hear cars driving into the market place so that the villagers could do their weekly grocery shopping. When Jemma strained her ears and listened very carefully she could hear mobile phones ringing, each making its own ring tone.
After realizing that there was nothing more in this direction, Jemma turned around and headed back towards the marketplace. She discovered a golden peach, partially submerged in a fruit platter. Sucking the sugary nectar into her mouth, Jemma was fully satisfied with her raid of the marketplace. With juice dripping down her lustrous feathers, Jemma returned to the forest for a well deserved rest.